The Def Jam Records co-founder took to Instagram after his ex-wife and daughter shared allegations of abusive behavior.
Russell Simmons is speaking out after his ex-wife, Kimora Lee Simmons, and their daughter, Aoki Lee Simmons, took to Instagram to share claims of his alleged abusive behavior.
On Tuesday, the Def Jam Records co-founder shared a post to his Instagram page addressing his daughters, Aoki, 20, and Ming Lee Simmons, 23.
"God is testing you a little bit, it's ok, be strong. . . they are called growing pains . . . as you know, we grow through adversity and struggle," the 65-year-old wrote. "You read my books and heard me preach your whole childhood . . . reach back to old lessons and remember to remember 'smile and breathe' ❤️ 'smile and breathe' . . . you are the watchers of this world . . . so let go . . . be at ease . . . God is driving and he is working on you ❤️."
Russell seemingly addressed Aoki's social media post, in which she shared a video of him yelling at her over FaceTime to her Instagram page. "DEEPLY sorry for being frustrated and yelling," he wrote.
"But know this . . . there are no conditions . . . for sure i love you guys more than i love myself," he concluded the post.
Kimora and Russell got married in 1998 and split up in 2006. She filed for divorce two years later in 2008.
The family strife appears to have been kicked off after their oldest daughter, Ming, wished Kimora a "Happy Father's Day" instead of Russell.
The music executive seemed to respond when he shared an Instagram Story that appeared to be targeting his ex-wife, writing, "Stop telling fathers they should have fought harder to see their children & start asking mothers why he had to fight at all."
Kimora then took to Instagram Live, where she broke down in tears explaining how Russell has allegedly been verbally attacking her and her daughters and lying about the status of their family's relationship.
Kimora claimed that Russell's gaslighting has been overlooked by fans and friends of theirs alike due to his "powerhouse" media mogul status. She accused Russell of being "abusive" to the women in his life. Kimora's allegations are particularly poignant as Russell has previously been accused of sexual misconduct by 18 women, all of which he's denied.
"Please don't attack my children, they've been through so much. Don't attack my family -- which is supposed to be your family too," Kimora said of Russell, choking up. "Don't do that because you're at rock bottom, I don't know, you're grasping at straws. This is a money grab? I don't really know what this is," she questioned.
She alleged that Russell would send himself flowers and post photos on social media claiming they are from her. Kimora claims he has been blocked from her Instagram for years.
Their youngest daughter, Aoki, also took to Instagram Live to explain how despite defending her father in the past, "this man is awful to me. He has done awful things to me and I'm so tired of it," she said in tears.
She went on to say that she's been scared to speak up in the past because her father is so beloved in the entertainment industry.
"So if I never get any jobs ever again then like fine, I'll go be a lawyer because I shouldn't have to lie or be bullied by a child," she said of her father having an impact on her modeling career. "You cannot just abuse your kids behind closed doors and not take accountability. You don't get to do this," Aoki said.
Aoki also took to Instagram to share several screenshots of text messages with her father where he calls Kimora a "piece of sh**" as well as a silenced video of him yelling at her via FaceTime.
Aoki wrote, "My father is not well, for years, he needs help and won't accept that he refuses to acknowledge he is not himself. He has threatened and bullied my sister, my grandma, he has harassed my grandma in the middle of the night in poor health, send a man to my sisters apartment at 2am to scare her. He lashes out at ANYONE who does not say 'oh Russell everything is fine.' Well it's not fine. If 'I never get a fashion job again' like he threatens, I'll be a lawyer I guess and work in criminal Justice. Sure I love my job but if he takes it away from me I won't die. You don't threaten my sister and grandma and mother and say "who's gonna believe you I'm Russell Simmons nobody thinks I'm crazy" well he is."
Although Ming Lee didn't add to her sister or mother's allegations, she did share a post on Instagram on Tuesday, thanking others for their support.
ET has reached out to Russell for a comment.
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